“The force of the accident has raised some structural stability concerns for the building, and our engineers are conducting a review,” Sclafani said.

Elevator experts say any number of electrical problems could have caused Wednesday’s tragedy.

One possibility is a problem with sensors meant to ensure the elevator car won’t move unless the doors are closed, said C. Stephen Carr, a San Francisco-based elevator consultant.

Another is a power surge.

“There have been many cases of extra electricity buildup causing a car to move,” Carr said.

“Redundancies built within their systems” should prevent elevators from moving unless their doors are closed, said Brian Black of National Elevator Industry Inc., an industry group.

A Transel worker died Sept. 23 in the last elevator fatality in the city. Robert Melito, 44, of Staten Island, fell 10 floors down the shaft of a 13-story commercial building at 230 W. 38th St. in the Garment District.

Transel did not return calls for comment.

Family and friends yesterday mourned Hart, a rising star at Young & Rubicam.

“She was a terrific young woman,” said her dad, Alex Hart, outside the city Medical Examiner’s Office.

“There is no easy way to deal with it,” Hart said. “Things happen in life, and we don’t know why. We don’t know how to deal with them, but we do . . . We are grateful for the wonderful 41 years she gave us.”

As the family grieved, many of the millions of people who ride elevators every day in the city were jittery over their normally routine trips up and down.

“People are really afraid. They’re scared and are asking a lot of questions,” said Jerry Hermosur, 47, doorman at an older office building at 30 E. 40th St. “Some people have been taking the stairs now; they don’t want to take the risk.”

Experts say elevator phobia is a common affliction and can be heightened by a freak accident like the one that killed Hart.

It is a combination of claustrophobia (fear of confined spaces) and acrophobia (fear of heights).

Signs of elevator phobia can include nausea, a rise in temperature, hyperventilation, fainting, a racing heart rate and, in severe cases, loss of bodily functions.

“Fear of elevators should be treated like any other phobia,” said Dr. Amanda Itzkoff, an anxiety-disorder expert at Mount Sinai Medical Center.

First, she said, patients should practice using elevators, perhaps going up or down only one or two floors at a time to lessen their anxiety.

Nancy Kaszerman, a photographer who lives on the Upper East Side, said she always preferred taking the stairs.

“After it happened yesterday, there was a woman who refused to get into the elevator by herself,” said Emmanuel Williams, 28, doorman at 274 Madison Ave. “She said if she was going down, somebody else would be going down with her.”

You might also want to read

Get Connected!

Meet Dr. Amanda Itzkoff

Dr. Amanda Itzkoff, MD is trained to use both medication and talk therapy to treat all psychiatric disorders including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, substance abuse and dependence, and eating disorders. Read More